IMPERSONATORS STAR AT WEST BOCA CENTER

The King and the Chairman, together again? Believe it, baby! Interpreter-impersonators of Elvis Presley and Frank Sinatra share the stage on Saturday afternoon at Veterans Park in Boca Raton. The concert is a benefit for the Youth Activity Center & Theatre of West Boca, which opened three years ago at Veterans Park.

The center's executive director, Ellen VaHab, hopes to build and maintain community support for the budding enterprise in part through public performances. To that end, VaHab recently appointed a volunteer director for theatrical and musical projects: Artistic director Burt Richards, who also serves as youth center publicist, is going the extra mile for this gig _ he's the Sinatra on Saturday's bill.

"All I do is wear a fedora, and bring the voice along," says Richards, who admits to having brown eyes, not Sinatra's signature blue. An impromptu burst of singing over the telephone, however, proves Richards does a pretty fair tribute to the late, great crooner.

The benefit is headlined by Elvis impersonator Rick Ricketts and includes a few non-channeling acts: rock group Velvet N Nails, vocalist Fran Michaels and singer-guitarist J.D. Tanner.

The big show starts at 2 p.m. at the youth center pavilion inside Veterans Park, 9400 W. Palmetto Park Road, west of Lyons Road. Admission is free, but donations will be accepted on behalf of the center, whose officials someday hope to have their own building, more equipment, computers and paid instructors in the arts, sports and academics.

Free parking is plentiful. Chairs and blankets are welcome. Call the center at 561-883-9325 for details. And tell 'em Ol' Brown Eyes sent you.

Wish list

For all the concerts South Florida will play host to this summer, I keep managing to be disappointed by what's not coming around. The Beastie Boys, for example, just announced a slew of North American dates for their Hello Nasty tour. Miami, Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach are not among them. Nor is any Florida city, for that matter.

New York's funky rap clowns head to Europe in late August, and it's anybody's guess at this point whether they will return by way of the Sunshine State. It's no secret that traveling to Florida's southern tip is costly for any touring outfit. The extra mileage means more gas, higher hotel tabs, added wear and tear on crews and equipment. Many bands prefer to start or finish their tours down here, so the trip is one way. Others simply bypass the region, even with its roster of medium and large venues.

Seattle rockers Pearl Jam are rumored to be adding South Florida dates to their current trek, probably in October. But nothing is confirmed. This region, despite its large population and varied musical tastes, also has yet to see any of the following: the Smokin' Grooves rap and r&b; caravan; the 1998 edition of the Further Festival jam-band regatta, despite last year's 12,000-plus Further crowd at Coral Sky Amphitheatre near West Palm Beach; the Bob Dylan-Van Morrison tour; the Foo Fighters; and the various anti-Nashville country-punk insurgents.

Even this year's Lilith Fair, July 26 at Coral Sky, feels like the low-cost version: We get generic guitar queen Meredith Brooks, while other Lilith stops get alternative-rock adventurer Liz Phair.

We can't even get Buena Vista Social Club down here, and its members live 90 miles away _ in Cuba! Buena Vista and its American champion, Ry Cooder, decided to play New York instead _ granted, for reasons having more to do with Miami politics than tour geography. In fairness to South Florida, we do enjoy regular visits by the Latin and Caribbean world's biggest stars. And, as my colleague David Cazares has noted, the Castro-obsessed social climate here may be changing enough to eventually allow resident Cuban artists a warmer welcome. Now if we could just get a few more American acts to follow suit.